The Philadelphia Regional Final for the Emergenza Music Festival took place over two nights last weekend at The Trocadero. In the heart of Chinatown, we had great bands, and a great venue to go with the amazing Orange Pork. Friday began with the boys from Jersey Wide Service giving a tribute to the bands of the past from their home state by bringing their down and dirty rock sound to the stage. They were followed up by the gruesome sounds of The Von Horrorbles. They are the dark side of punk, with lyrics bringing images of a great slasher flick in full blood and gore. No Outloet brought some sweet melodies to the stage with harmonies that meld into the smooth chord progressions and steady rhythms of a solid performance. Deluge set a pace with their blistering fast metal that not even their huge mob of crazy fans could keep up with. Scorching guitar riffs and blazing fast double kick beats, they may have more chops than Elvis. Ready, Set, Fight put on a fantastic show with their rock that’s just a bit off the beaten path. They’re different enough without appealing only to the musically idiosyncratic misanthropes. That was totally reserved for The Brown Eyes. If you are looking for a sound you’ve never heard that can liberally be described as music, this could be the band for you. Avelena Falls took the stage displaying themselves as exactly what they are, a very good emo rock band. Emo looks, emo moves and emo music. Blackcloud 13 started the last third of the show with their heavy rock and roll. A descent set of songs with an able performance. Spoons For Adam brought a bit of femininity to the stage, but just because two females are in the group, not because it plays pussy music. The music showed more balls than softer side as they mixed a bit of pop with a bit of rock for a great set that impressed most. Jeta Grove put together a very nice set of alternative indie rock. Good songs, good technical skills and good stage presence. The night was finished off with SOI (Soul On Ice), with its self-described soul on steroids. This was the chance for the crowd to move their feet to a different rhythm and get their funk on. As good as Friday’s show was, it was just the warm up to the amazing Saturday finale that was still to come. The Fame got it kicked off with a very good set of alternative rock. They mixed simple guitars, a driving beat and vocals solid enough to round out a nice set. Relay also put a very solid set. A first-rate three piece with solid songs that entertained. Still Motion was another three piece made up of young kids with very mature musical skills. Blues based guitar riffs and nicely shaped changes show signs of greater things still to come. Arms Reach put together a very nice set of well written but somewhat unadventurous tunes. Well played and well sang, a nice compliment to the rest of the night. After The Fall returned from their fifth place finish in the Philadelphia final of 2006 to put on another fantastic show. The set was good but they ended with a bang, finishing with a spellbinding aria that might have been the best individual song of the night. 4Deep ended the show with the most amazing guitar riffs of the show as their guitarist took the award for Best Guitarist in Philadelphia. This was solid hard rock with relentless energy and pulsating rhythms. 6th place went to Deluge, who put on a great show on Friday and didn’t let up a bit on Saturday night. Fast metal with a machine gun double kick earned their drummer the award for 2nd Best Drummer in Philly. 5th place went to our only Christian rock band of the weekend, Constant Recourse. Well written songs, good vocal melodies and harmonies, very able technical skills and the look to fit their style made a very nicely packaged performance. 4th place was take